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The Top Three Hikes in the City of San Francisco
By Christina Lalanne
From city streets to dirt trails, you don't need to leave the city of San Francisco to get some exercise or solitude. And you definitely don't need a car. Armed with a $2 bus ticket and some good walking shoes, the following three hikes offer inexpensive and meaningful ways to see the country's most charmingly good-looking city.
A detailed map is essential. Bring your smartphone or buy a physical map; try The Rough Guide to San Francisco Map or Great Pacific's transit map.
The Quiet Coast: Lands End Trail (1.5 miles)
Starting at a bluff overlooking the Pacific, the Lands End Trail is an easy stroll along an uneasy coast. Crashing waves, lush vegetation, and dirt trails lend a feeling of wild isolation all within the country's second densest city.
Originally pushed through the jagged northwestern edge of the city to make way for a 19th-century tourist train, the right-of-way offers views of the distant Golden Gate Bridge and green mountains meeting the sea.
Lands End runs parallel to the water route taken through the Straits of the Golden Gate by conquistadors and gold rushers, returning soldiers, and hopeful immigrants. Today only Chinese merchant seaman and private boats trace this historic water route, but hikers can still imagine themselves as explorers, walking the Lands End Trail with almost the same views and anticipation as the thousands before them.
Practicalities: The trail starts at a new parking lot near the intersection of Point Lobos Avenue and 48th Avenue. This is also the last stop on the "38-Geary" city bus which departs at downtown's very central Union Square (Geary Boulevard at Powell Street). The trip takes 30 minutes; do not board buses that list the Veteran's Hospital as the terminus.
The Lands End Trail will spit hikers out at Eagles Point overlook just a half block away from the intersection of El Camino del Mar and 32nd Avenue. A walk one block south on 32nd Avenue, to 32nd and California Street, is the eastbound "1-California" bus stop, taking travelers right back downtown.
Pack a lunch from downtown or eat at the elegant Cliff House Restaurant (1090 Point Lobos Blvd; 386-3330) or at the all-American Louis' Restaurant (902 Point Lobos Blvd; 387-6330) before your hike. Clement Street near the end of the trail offers some of the city's best Asian food.
The History and Glitz Hike: Along Jackson Street to Alta Plaza Park (2.7 miles)
This hilly hike offers the best slice of life through San Francisco's most scenic neighborhoods, walking past nearly everything iconic about the city. Starting at the stately Ferry Building, hikers charge past the city's early Gold Rush neighborhood, through the heart of Chinatown, on up to pretty pastel Nob and Russian Hills, and end with glittering Pacific Heights views.
Clinging almost entirely to Jackson Street, this urban hike – tackling a couple of very steep hills – is still challenging. Stops for sightseeing and eating can break up the uphill climb, making for all-day activity.
The landmark 1898 Ferry Building, with its gourmet food stalls, is an excellent launching point. In the morning, grab pastries at the Berkeley-based Acme Bakery (6:20 am-7:30 pm weekdays, 8 am-7 pm weekends) and coffee at Peet's Coffee and Tea (6 am-8 pm weekdays, 6:30-7 pm weekends).
Walk north along The Embarcadero, up to Pier 1, and turn left on Washington Street, leaving the historic 20th-century port behind. Make a right onto Drumm Street and a left onto Jackson, where you'll remain for the whole hike. Keep walking for two or three blocks until you notice yourself surrounded by several ones to two-story brick buildings. This is the Barbary Coast, San Francisco's original Gold Rush waterfront before landfill extended the coastline.
With the discovery of gold in 1848, San Francisco in one year went from a small town of 800 to a bustling frontier outfitter of 25,000. These brick buildings are some of the only survivors from America's original Wild West town.
Continue on Jackson Street for two or three blocks and pause at Grant Avenue. San Francisco's colorful Chinatown is the oldest in North America and one of the most densely populated neighborhoods in the country.
Enjoy the fanciful architecture: upturned eaves, lampposts decorated with twisting dragons, and hanging lanterns. Tucked into Ross Alley just past Grant is the claustrophobic Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory (free; 56 Ross Alley; 8 am-8 pm).
Continue three blocks up the hill to Mason Street for the big, brick Cable Car Museum (free; 1201 Mason Street; 10 am-5 pm), housing giant whirring gears that power the entire city-wide system. Four more westward blocks lead to a couple of lunch options: the Hyde Street Bistro (1521 Hyde Street; 292-4415) offer sit-down French fare while Nook (1500 Hyde Street;447-4100) is a casual gourmet café.
The next milestone along Jackson comes four blocks down the road at Franklin Street. The historic Haas-Lilienthal House (tours $8; 2007 Franklin Street; Sundays 11 am-4 pm, Saturdays and Wednesdays 12 pm-3 pm) is a Victorian survivor from the devastating 1906 fire when eighty percent of the city burned to the ground.
Eight more blocks through Pacific Heights lead past some of the most expensive real estates in the city, finishing with a view at Alta Plaza Park. Climb to the top of the park for the bay views to the north and the city views to the south.
Practicalities: To return downtown, find the northwest corner of Alta Plaza Park, or Jackson Street at Scott Street, and the eastbound "3-Jackson" bus. Stopping at popular Union Square, the bus ultimately terminates within seven blocks of the Ferry Building.
The Bridge Hike: Across the Golden Gate to Sausalito (4 miles)
Though more popularly done as a bicycle trip (see www.blazingsaddles.com or www.baycitybike.com), this bridge walk requires no uphill and is equally rewarding at its slower pace. It ends conveniently in pretty, bayside Sausalito, with its variety of restaurants. Sausalito is also the launching point for the scenic public ferry back to San Francisco.
Though the bridge is San Francisco's most famous sight, most visitors stop by only for a brief homage to a monument deserving greater contemplation. Setting out from the San Francisco side of the bridge – which can be reached via a taxi or the "28-19th Avenue" city bus – a small snack bar, a gift shop, and restrooms provide the last comforts before the town of Sausalito at the end of the walk (with the notable exception of more bathrooms on the opposite side of the bridge).
The Golden Gate Bridge
Completed in 1937, the Golden Gate bridge has beauty and grace while retaining its mass and function. There are taller, longer, and brighter bridges elsewhere; but this remains arguably the earth's most famous. While walking the bridge, notice the Art Deco detailing and the repeated vertical lines.
Looking below, if the bay underneath the bridge were drained like a bathtub, the height of the Golden Gate Bridge would rival the TransAmerica Pyramid, San Francisco's tallest skyscraper at 853 feet.
Once past the bridge, a bike path continues northward, meeting Alexander Avenue, which leads down the hill into Sausalito. With views over the bay and Angel Island – the West Coast's immigration station – Alexander turns into South Street and intersects with 2nd Street. Turn right onto 2nd and after two blocks, right again onto Bridgeway.
Once an old rough-and-tumble port town, Sausalito has embraced its postcard image and caters mostly to tourism. Along Bridgeway – the town's main drag – are Scoma's (588 Bridgeway; 332-9532), among the Bay Area's best-known seafood house, and Venice Gourmet (625 Bridgeway; 332-3544) with excellent take-out deli sandwiches to be enjoyed in a nearby bayside park.
After a long walk, the town's ferry provides a welcome, scenic seat from which to survey your hike. More than simply a means of returning home, the ferry passes Alcatraz and Treasure islands, sailboats and seagulls, and finishes with a panoramic city view.
Practicalities: Two companies run vessels from Sausalito to San Francisco. The Golden Gate Ferry runs 6-9 ferries a day to and from the Ferry Building (goldengateferry.org; $7.85 adults; $3.80 seniors and kids 6-18). The Blue & Gold Fleet runs 5-8 ferries a day to and from Pier 41 on Fisherman's Wharf (blueandgoldfleet.com; $9.50 adults; $5.25 kids).
Where to Stay in San Francisco
San Francisco has an enormous stock of hotel rooms; most visitors these days book online through travel sites. This can often be the best way to secure a good deal but always consider location first. The two most popular neighborhoods – with vastly more tourists than locals – are central, urban Union Square and brash, theme-park-esque Fisherman's Wharf.
Despite the negatives, these neighborhoods offer convenient, vibrant locations. Still, the few Nob Hill or North Beach properties – and some properties farther afield – are worth considering. Recommendations:
The San Remo Hotel: 2237 Mason Street. Historic European-style hotel, with bathrooms down the hall, in an excellent location. Rates start at $75.
Nob Hill Motor Inn: 1630 Pacific Avenue. Though the décor is drab and standard, the rooms are clean and the location – in a quiet residential downtown neighborhood just two blocks from the cable car line – is perfect. And there's parking. Rates start at $150.
Cavallo Point: 601 Murray Circle, Sausalito. A luxury eco-hotel tucked underneath the Golden Gate Bridge opposite San Francisco, Cavallo Point is much more of a getaway than the downtown alternatives. Built within the historic buildings of Fort Baker, a car (or at least a shuttle to the nearby ferry dock) is necessary. For hikers, though, the resort is wonderfully close to the green trails of Marin County. Rates start at $250. ()
Christina Lalanne is a San Francisco tour guide who leads private walking tours at www.sfwalks.com.
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This blog is about the Volcomics opening that was in London on June 28th at the Truman Brewery. Special Thanks to the Volcom Art Loft for making all of this happen. I probably wrote that in my last blog too, but when somebody flies you to London they deserve more than one thank you.
I didn't go by myself. Mike Aho, Kevin Braden and Todd Bratrud were there also. Hi guys.
Allison Sands, Mel Kadel, and Travis Millard were there too. Hello there.
I forgot to take installation shots before the show opened (when the space was nice and clean), so I took some photos after the opening. That's why there are beer bottles all over the place. Apparently people in England enjoying drinking beer as much as we do in America. Weird, huh?
I was all like "Who's that? Meatloaf?" I don't know anything about metal apparently.
Mel drank all those beers. Hah hah ha.... no. I'm kidding. She didn't drink the Coronas.
Pete Hilicar, Brat Rude and Dan Cates. (Thanks for all of the help, Pete.)
Paul (Monsters) Roberts and Hannah. Nice to meet you
People seemed to really enjoy the comic.
Instead of hanging drawings I worked on an installation for this show. It was titled: "Hey, do we have any beer stashed in the back?"
Did you guys hear that Hammer Pants are making a comeback? No? I didn't either.
I shot this photo right before the opening. We kept saying how it looked exactly like those cheesy band publicity photos. You know the ones, right? Where everyone is trying to look super cool. Anyway, I went ahead and made a flyer out of the photo just in case Mel, Travis and Allison decide to start a band together.
One night only...
Awesome Pushead - Thrasher shirt.
This is an awesome slim line package, but I'd still rather have the extra two beers.
The Afterparty was Out of Control!!!
While we were in London we checked out this skateboard shoe history show titled "Made For Skate." Bratrud designed the postcard, etc. for it.
I thought the concept sounded a little weird, but the show was put together really well. It was more like a museum exhibition than a gallery show.
Not weird afterall, more like rad.
They even had a pair of ETNICS. Etnics?
If you skate then you know there's some drama here.
Outside of the shoe exhibit I saw a cool bike. I think it's a PK Ripper but I'm not for sure.
Wait, that's my line.
This is a little collaborative drawing Millard and I started working on during lunch one day.
It turned out pretty neat. It's an elephant that ate too much birthday cake. Party hardy.
We also did some sight seeing while we were there. That big ferris wheel is called the London Eye. We totally rode it.
I don't know exactly how high up we were so I'm going to guess. Uh... 3 miles?
We were so high up in the air that we could see dead dudes in the park. Which is always radical.
After we rode the Eye we saw Elvis. He looked pretty good.
One afternoon we met up with Fos. He's the art director for Heroin Skateboards and he's also doing the art for that Altamont company. If you don't skate I apologize for ostracizing you. (That's Horsey on the right.)
This is a drawing of a banana that Fos gave me. Thanks, sir.
We got to see this awesome skatepark that was built under the London Bridge. It was a really nice use of space.
That's me with the white blades.
After we checked out the skatepark we ate dinner and then went to the Tate Modern and walked around for a few hours. On the way back to the bus we saw this gnarly drop in. Without hesitation Horsey climbed up into the windowsill and dropped in. People clapped. It was great. And he hadn't stepped on his board in hours. No warm up. I was impressed. I hope you are too. If not then you've been watching too much Mega Ramp.
Travis forgot his camera so he made me take these two photos. Easy on the self promo dude...
This is an awesome sign for an art gallery.
I don't know much about "street art" but I know what I like when I see it.
This is some really old graffiti in the Tower of London. Trip on that.
Again, I don't know much about street art... but this looks neat.
I'm more into "street editing."
At some point during my trip to London everybody went home except my wife and myself. Which was cool because some of those dudes were starting to smell weird.
We were sort of sad to see everybody go home so we went to the park to make ourselves feel better.
In the park we saw ducks.
And a pelican.
I don't think of myself as a mean person, but part of me really wanted to see that Pelican go buck wild on a small child.
He didn't though. He just hung out with some interesting looking tourists.
Man, that pelican totally makes me want to throw up some peace signs too. Crazy ass pelican.
By the time we met this cat we'd totally forgotten about our friends that went home. Check out those eyes.
After we forgot about our friends leaving us, we totally did some sight seeing. That big clock is called Big Bend or something like that.
We're pretty sure that's where Cinderella lived (lives?) Is she still alive?
I took a photo of City Hall seconds before it fell over. Hah hahh.... that's totally not funny. Sorry.
Went to Greenwich one day.
It was totally pretty.
You could see like, really far.
Not a Wal-Mart in sight.
This weird kid kept following us around though so we went back to the city.
And ate.
And bothered people.
And met up with Pac Man at a pub.
The last day we were there an awesome storm blew in.
It made for good picture taking.
And we even saw a rainbow.
I included this photo because I was going to make some sort of a joke about hippies and those crazy glass pipes they carry around in those padded pillow case things. But then I couldn't really think of anything funny about that.
Thanks for reading. Next stop: San Francisco (this Saturday July 14th) at the Space Gallery - 1141 Polk St (415) 377-3325. {moscomment}
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subset: commoncrawl


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Battery Buying Guide - How to buy the best battery for your Home and Office
Battery plays a crucial role in determining the performance of your power backup equipment. So, you must check the battery specifications properly when deciding to purchase a new battery or when your old battery becomes unusable.
Battery Size
Generally, the size of a battery is determined by its wattage load and projected runtime. Using a battery which is not strong enough will be unable to power up your UPS or inverter and may lead to some discharging issues that could permanently damage the battery. The below mentioned formula can be used to calculate the size of the battery:
Battery size = Inverter rating (watts) ÷ input voltage x usage time (hours)
Battery Capacity
The electrical capacity is measured in Ampere Hour (AH) which is the amount of energy the battery can store. Electrical current is multiplied by time in hours which will be equal to ampere-hours. This is an important measure to see while choosing a battery for a UPS or inverter. AH ratings of a battery will vary with temperature and also with the rate of discharge.
Battery Discharge Rate
When the battery is discharged over 10 hours, the rate is C10. C20 is for 20Hrs and so on. These rates indicate how many amperes the battery can supply for 10 and 20 hours without falling below a certain voltage. So, lower will be the discharge rate, lesser will be the electricity you will be able to draw for a designated period.
Types of battery
Lead-acid battery
Lead-acid batteries are the common type of rechargeable batteries. Most of the inverters and UPS have lead acid batteries of different types.
Flooded/Vented battery
These type of batteries need maintenance and distilled water has to be filled once in a while. This traction style battery has a traditional engine start. Liquid electrolyte moves freely in the cell compartment. Users can access the individual cells and add distilled water when the battery dries out. Popular applications are engine starting, deep cycle designs, etc.
Deep cycle battery
The deep cycle batteries have been designed to be less susceptible to any sort of degradation due to cycling and are required for applications where batteries get regularly discharged such as uninterruptible power supplies. These kind of batteries have thicker plates which deliver less peak current, but are able to withstand frequent discharging.
They are also called traction batteries or golf cart batteries. They are mainly used to handle repeated discharge/charge cycles.
Sealed battery
These batteries are usually maintenance-free. Although you do not have access to the cell compartments, the internal structure is basically the same as a flooded battery. The one and only difference is that the manufacturer ensures a sufficient amount of acid in the sealed battery to sustain the chemical reaction under the normal usage throughout its warranty period.
VRLA battery
VRLA or Valve Regulated Lead Acid battery is a type of sealed battery. It has a valve regulating mechanism which allows a safe escape of hydrogen and oxygen gases during charging and therefore no separate room is needed to keep this battery.
AGM battery
1. AGM or Absorbed Glass Matt battery is also a sealed battery.
2. These batteries boast all the benefits of gelled batteries, but are more rugged and durable.
These are also known as starved electrolyte or dry battery because the glass mat is just 95% saturated which means that it do not leak acid even if its casing is broken.
Gel battery
The gel battery is similar to the AGM style because the electrolytes in the battery are suspended but different. The electrolyte in this cell has silica additive which makes it hard. The recharge voltage on this gel battery is lower than the other styles of lead acid battery. It is the most sensitive cell in terms of adverse reactions and over-voltage charging. Gel Batteries are used in very deep cycle applications and have the capacity to last a bit longer in hot weather applications. If inappropriate battery charger is used on this gel battery then poor performance and premature failure will be certain.
Battery based on Design
- a.) Pure Plante : The type of batteries have a long life but at a relatively high expense than the flat plate or tubular batteries. Hence, they find less use these days.
- b.) Flat Plate : The positive plate of this battery is a rugged lead alloy grid that is is filled with a specially compounded paste of active material.
- c.) Tubular batteries : The positive plate of this battery is composed of a series of parallel polyester tubes which are filled with lead oxide to prevent 'Shedding'. They are mainly recommended for UPS back up power and inverters where the environmental conditions are very tough. They provide long hours of backup.
Checking the efficiency of battery
To determine if a battery system is experiencing any problem, you can fully charge the batteries then shut off the battery charger and remove all the connected loads. Allow each battery to stand on an open-circuit for up to one hour. Measure the voltage of the battery. If the battery voltage spread rises above .30 volts for a 12 volt battery then a problem is indicated. Only battery voltage cannot confirm a problem. When the voltage spread indicates some problem, confirmation can be done by taking some electrolyte specific gravity readings with the help of a hydrometer. If the readings show a spread greater than .030, it will show slow constant current charge.
Top Battery Brands
- Sukam
- Exide
- SF Sonic
- Okaya
- Luminous
- Amaron
- Amco
Maintenance of battery
Maintenance of the battery is important for proper functioning of your power backup equipment. There are several dangers which a battery may pose including:
- Short circuit of the battery terminals
- Fire hazard due to battery gases
- Severe acid burns from wet lead-acid batteries
Here are some tips for battery maintenance:
- The battery terminals must be clean regularly
- The electrolyte levels in the battery should be maintained over the minimum levels. Only distilled water should be used to fill the electrolyte.
- The inverter batteries must be equalized in every two months. The deposits on battery must be knocked down by controlled overcharge. It will help in extending the battery life.
- The battery tops must be cleaned with rags dipped in solution of baking soda. This solution should never enter the batteries through any of the vent holes.
- The battery terminals must be checked regularly for corrosion which will be indicated by green coloured deposits.
- Always keep your battery in a cool and ventilated place. Heat must be avoided as it will harm the battery and reduce its life.
Buying batteries can be a daunting and time-consuming task because of the fact that you have to compare different batteries and several battery suppliers before finalizing the right one. This results in wastage of your valuable time and incurs additional costs in going from store to store. So, look no further than Sulekha where you can find the best battery dealers at one place who can provide you top quality batteries from leading brands like Exide, Amaron, Okaya, MtekPower, SF Sonic, Luminous and DigiPower, etc. at very reasonable rates.


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Navigant Consulting Inc., a Chicago-based management consultancy, is the product of more than 25 acquisitions over six years. No wonder that, until recently, its short-term incentive-pay system was seriously flawed. There was no consistent method of rewarding performance.
"It was difficult to manage so many disparate incentive tools," says Julie Howard, vice president and human-capital officer. "It was a mess." Even companies with only one system are struggling to make it more effective.
So last summer Navigant redesigned the system. Its short-term cash bonus plan now consists of two basic elements: Incentive pay for Navigant's 400 senior professionals is based largely on the company's performance, while its 800 consulting and administrative staff are rewarded primarily according to individual performance.
It's too soon to tell fully what effect the change has had, though already the company is seeing reduced attrition. The hope is that the new incentive plan will help the $244 million (in sales) company recover from two straight years of losses. So far, "people are very excited about it," says Howard, who has been touring the country to explain the program to employees. "Clarity is a big thing."
Navigant is one of an increasing number of companies that now offer incentive pay to many nonmanagement personnel, linking pay more closely to performance, as it shifts from fixed to more-variable annual compensation. In a survey of 2,400 companies last year, consulting firm William M. Mercer found that 56 percent provided incentive pay to employees below the executive level (65 percent when nonprofit health- care companies were excluded). That's up from 54 percent in 1999.
At the same time, companies have been offering variable pay to a greater number of their employees. Since 1997, the Mercer survey showed, 49 percent of respondents with incentive plans have increased the number of employees eligible to participate in the plans.
But companies clearly are struggling to design their incentive programs in an effective way. The soul-searching is aimed at motivating employees up and down the line to help companies meet their overall goals. Of course, plan specifics vary with a company's culture, size, industry, and competitive position. But any winning formula must address the following question: To what degree should payouts be linked to the performance of the corporation as a whole; to that of an employee's division, plant, team, or project; to the achievement of individual goals; or to some combination of all of these?
Consultants say incentive programs on the leading edge are combining goals and custom-fitting the combination to the rank of employees, much the way Navigant has done. At stake is nothing less than a company's ability to compete, and that challenge will only grow as the economy slows. No surprise then that CFOs are getting more deeply involved in design efforts. As the overseers of human resources, they view payroll expense increasingly as an investment in human capital, and incentive compensation as something that can improve the returns on that investment.
Unfortunately, theory does not translate easily into practice: In a survey at the end of 1999 of 771 companies, management and HR consulting firm Towers Perrin found that less than a third of companies with incentive programs of any kind see a significant impact on results. Navigant nonetheless has high hopes for its new plan. If the revised incentive system is as effective as the company expects, says CFO Ben Perks, who helped align the new plan with the company's goals, "it's a win/win/win–for the employees, the company, and the shareholders."
Navigant isn't alone. Ever since the end of the recession of the early 1990s, companies have been struggling to attract, motivate, and retain employees without greatly increasing fixed costs. Merit raises alone, however, have been insufficient to achieve those goals; the measly 4.2 percent on average that U.S. companies have budgeted in recent years for annual raises does not allow for significant differentiation among employees, according to Mercer. Long-term incentives such as stock options and restricted stock, meanwhile, may be more effective as a retention tool than as a goad to performance, and may be ineffectual in any case unless the market rebounds.
Incentive pay added to raises fills the gap, enabling companies to hand out greater rewards to deserving employees while minimizing costs, since the incentive shrinks in bad times. For greater cost savings, some employers are going so far as to replace raises with incentives over a phase-in period of a few years. Others have even reduced base pay for new workers while dressing up incentives.
Consultants believe that as the economy slows, the trend toward more- variable pay will continue. Global competition remains strong, and in a downturn, there will be a need to improve productivity. Indeed, companies may begin taking advantage of workers' growing job insecurity to implement new incentive plans that reduce base pay in return for greater potential incentive rewards. Already, says Steve Gross, who heads the U.S. compensation consulting practice at Mercer, more troubled companies "are saying, 'If you don't accept these plans, we're going to move the work offshore.'" For others, employee retention will remain a driving factor. "'It took so much energy to hire these folks, we don't want to make them unhappy,'" he adds.
So far, according to the latest data available, incentive systems typically pay bonuses to all eligible employees based on the overall profitability of the company, at least among large companies. The 1999 Towers Perrin report found that 44 percent of the companies surveyed– the largest segment for any incentive plan type–used organizationwide incentive plans in which payouts were linked to a companywide measure, and distributions were made from a pool in proportion to salary. This approach is not only straightforward, it also sends a clear message that "we're all in this together."
To be sure, many companies have been raising the bar in this area. Instead of paying out bonuses whenever a company achieves profitability, programs increasingly hold out until the company reaches a specified profit level. At that threshold, the company either begins paying a preset ratio of profits earned beyond that point or a predetermined bonus pool.
Consider a new plan started last year by The Boeing Co., which has been under growing competitive pressure. Boeing's program, its first broad-based incentive scheme for 88,000 nonexecutive, nonunion employees, is based entirely on the achievement of a predetermined level of annual corporate performance–net profit minus a certain charge (which the company would not specify). In the first year, 2000, employees could earn an extra 5 days of pay–on top of annual raises and rewards for some employees involved in certain projects–if the company met the target, and up to 10 days' pay if the company exceeded it. In the end, employees earned 7.85 extra days of pay.
"The intent was to offer the opportunity for all nonunion Boeing employees to share in the success of the company and get employees to think more like owners of the company," says Bruce Hanson, Boeing's manager of compensation and benefits. The program's message, he says, is "a shared-destiny message, as a company to move Boeing toward its overall profit target. We want you to be engaged, ask questions, offer suggestions to the organization" to help reach that profit. The message was reinforced by the company's decision to use the same performance metric in figuring executives' incentive pay–an amount that is then modified by an executive's individual performance against his or her preset goals. Another reinforcement: for this year, the board doubled the potential incentive reward.
But tying bonuses to corporate-level results has a potential downside. While the top officers and even division managers spend their days on activities that directly affect a company's sales and profits, lower-level employees have little influence on overall results. The goal, therefore, is not within what consultants like to call their "line of sight." Furthermore, this kind of incentive system–as well as those based purely on the performance of the employee's plant or division–can breed resentment from those who believe they work harder than others who receive the same rewards.
Yet fewer companies link bonuses to each individual's performance on one or more specific activities. Among those that do is a retailer that pays sales clerks double time for any sick days they don't use. "You pay out if behavior milestones are achieved, regardless of profits, which is pretty direct and understandable," says Carl Weinberg, a principal at Unifi Network, the HR consulting subsidiary of PricewaterhouseCoopers.
One obvious drawback: Companies may find themselves paying out bonuses at a time when the company has no profits and cannot afford extra payments. What's more, Weinberg says, "there's the risk that people will ignore other behaviors that you're not rewarding."
Yet companies such as Boeing recognize that they need to do more to motivate lower-level employees than tie incentive pay to corporatewide goals. Plant managers, Hanson says, are encouraged to translate the overall corporate economic profit target into goals specific to their factories, such as cost savings and additional revenue. "We're continuously trying to do a better job at that," he says.
Other companies are going a step further by adding team and individual targets that must also be met to reap the full reward. And the resulting incentive brew is increasingly the norm. The Towers Perrin survey indicates that 62 percent of companies with organizationwide incentive plans include an "individual performance modifier," in which an employee is measured against preestablished personal goals for the year. By providing rewards for such specific goals, these employers are trying to directly influence an employee's behavior.
In these multitarget programs, the higher the rank of the employee, the more the bonus is linked to broader financial goals; the lower the rank, the more the bonus is linked to team or individual measures of operational performance as well as financial measures. Usually no bonuses are paid out to anyone unless the company makes a profit or reaches a threshold profit level, and then the size of an employee's bonus is based on that individual's performance against his or her personal goals. The link to corporate profits allows everyone a broader perspective and the ability to make decisions in light of the company's overall objectives.
Typically, each employee receives a scorecard listing a few goals for the coming year, against which the employee's manager measures progress during the year. The challenge is to set the goals correctly. First, the scorecard shouldn't have too many–consultants advise three to five at most. Then, of course, the goals have to be the right ones for the company.
Consider the case of kitchen-cabinet maker American Woodmark Corp., which implemented a new incentive pay system for its 3,500 employees in 1993. Previously, the Winchester, Virginia-based company had given employees just one annual priority. But it found that because workers were so focused on meeting that goal, they were neglecting other important concerns. For instance, the company found that when it instructed its managers to design incentives that would improve quality, productivity declined.
So American Woodmark adopted the scorecard approach, in which each employee's scorecard states goals for the company as a whole as well as goals specific to the employee's plant. "The scorecard allows us to get all of the key priorities defined," says William Brandt, chairman of the $400 million (in sales) company.
Companywide goals are divided into the areas of cost, quality, delivery, and safety. Lower-level goals are set to support those, so that if each of the 11 plants meets its targets, the result will be the achievement of the companywide targets. And if each team at a plant meets its targets, they will add up to that plant's targets, and so on down to the individual level.
According to consultants, the biggest potential problem with multitarget plans is their complexity. With so many different targets– qualitative as well as quantitative–they are tough to manage. But the hardest part is setting them up in the first place. "The biggest hurdle for companies to clear is to set goals, to determine job by job and person by person what the right goals are," says Laury Sejen, a compensation consultant at Watson Wyatt Worldwide.
That, indeed, is what Navigant's financial and HR executives faced last year when redesigning its compensation system.
Success is hardly guaranteed. In its survey, Towers Perrin found that only 20 percent of companies with individual incentives and 31 percent with team incentives reported that their pay- for-performance plans had a significant impact on business results. But results were even worse for companies with organizationwide incentive goals: only 17 percent reported such improvement.
Still, some prominent management theorists believe that no variable- pay plan can work well. W. Edwards Deming, the famed management guru, believed that variable pay forced companies to rank workers against each other, setting up a competitive environment that could lead employees to work against each other.
However, communication may make a big difference. For starters, employees must know at the beginning of the year exactly what their bonus will be tied to. In fact, says Sejen, "our recommendation for best practice is for the manager and the employee to have a conversation" about appropriate individual goals. "The concept of employee buy-in is important."
During the year, "feedback has to be frequent," says William Abernathy, an incentive pay consultant who runs his own firm, Abernathy & Associates, in Memphis. "Annual is useless."
At American Woodmark, a team's performance relative to certain goals is posted daily or sometimes even hourly, Brandt says. Boeing delivers quarterly reports to employees on how well the company is performing against its target, and what that might mean in terms of potential extra days' pay at year-end.
In the end, says Abernathy, a good plan requires lots of planning, and with that comes complexity. "You can make it easy," he says, "but it won't work."
Hilary Rosenberg is a contributing editor at CFO.
Talk about variable pay.
Lincoln Electric Holdings takes the idea about as far as it can go, and the company benefits during both good times and bad as a result.
Lincoln Electric's sales and earnings fell sharply in the first quarter of 2001 from the previous year, and things look grim for the second quarter as well. At most companies, that would be a recipe for job cuts.
Not here. The Cleveland-based maker of arc welding and cutting products has a no-layoffs policy. And it has stuck to that policy in part because it holds to another unusual policy: no base salary for its 1,800 U.S. production workers.
For 62 years, Lincoln Electric, a nonunion, Nasdaq-listed company with more than $1 billion in sales and $78 million in income last year, has paid its manufacturing employees solely on the basis of how much each person produces, plus a profit-sharing bonus. In good times, employees are required to work overtime (within reason), which saves the company from having to hire, says CFO and treasurer Jay Elliott. Consequently, in bad times, instead of laying people off, Lincoln cuts out the overtime hours and, if necessary, shortens the regular workweek as well.
During boom times, Elliott says, the long hours elicit some "negative feelings" from employees. But now, he says, "they look across town and see LTV Steel laying off people, and Ford and the auto- supply companies laying off people, and they understand–they've got a job, and they're going to have a job." –H.R.
While Navigant Consulting's new system is far more coherent than the mishmash that preceded it, the
program nonetheless remains intricate.
For Navigant's senior professionals, an incentive pool begins to be formed only after the company's cash-flow margin–earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) divided by revenues–reaches 10 percent. The greater the margin beyond that point, the greater the percentage of it that flows into the bonus pool.
"These senior employees have more ability to impact the company's performance than lower-level employees, so we want them to be compensated based on that ability," explains CFO Ben Perks.
How the actual allocations are made depends on the employee's performance against personal and broader company goals, as spelled out on a scorecard. Top managers judge each scorecard using both financial and subjective measures (the subjective measures include such areas as effectiveness in leadership, mentoring, and marketing). Based on those decisions, they divide up the pool.
The consulting and administrative staff, meanwhile, share in a bonus pool funded with a percentage of revenues equivalent to competitive targets in the industry, regardless of profits.
Each lower-level employee receives scorecards with quantitative targets, such as chargeable hours for the year, and qualitative ones, such as teamwork and management skills. A greater portion of his or her bonus is attributable to individual performance achievements than it is for the senior professionals. "We want them to keep their eye on themselves and whether they're continuing to grow professionally," adds Julie Howard, vice president and human-capital officer. As rank increases in the lower-level group, division and company performance play ever-greater roles, and individual performance shrinks in importance. For instance, the ability to meet individual goals accounts for 90 percent of an administrator's bonus, 70 percent of a senior consultant's bonus, and 50 percent of a senior manager's bonus.
Despite the complexities of Navigant's new system, Perks is adamant about the need to adjust incentives according to rank. "Our belief is that senior professionals are responsible for managing revenues down to the EBITDA line, by bringing in profitable business," he says. "Younger employees are not bringing in as much business, so it's fairer to base their bonuses on revenues." –H.R.


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Course Description
This course covers the mathematical techniques necessary for understanding of materials science and engineering topics such as energetics, materials structure and symmetry, materials response to applied fields, mechanics and physics of solids and soft materials. The class uses examples from the materials science and engineering core courses (3.012 and 3.014) to introduce mathematical concepts and materials-related problem solving skills. Topics include linear algebra and orthonormal basis, eigenvalues and eigenvectors, quadratic forms, tensor operations, symmetry operations, calculus of several variables, introduction to complex analysis, ordinary and partial differential equations, theory of distributions, and fourier analysis.
Users may find additional or updated materials at Professor Carter's 3.016 course Web site.


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A Song Of Ice And Fire Book Enamel Pins Brooch Pin Badge
A Song Of Ice And Fire Book Enamel Pins Brooch Pin Badge
See our full collection here: thepinbadgeclub.co.uk
📌 Jazz up you jackets, bags, laptop cases and more with a pin from The Pin Club and show your love for your favourite tv shows, films, causes, places and more.
Enamel pin badge with a mix of metal and rubber backing clasps. The pin on this badge is sharp, please be careful when handling.
🌍 All of our pins are shipped globally with tracking. Please contact us for further updates to your delivery, we would be more than happy to help.
Follow us on Instagram to see new releases here: https://www.instagram.com/thepinclubshop/
𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗲𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲𝗹 𝗽𝗶𝗻 𝗯𝗮𝗱𝗴𝗲𝘀:
A pin badge can be worn just about anywhere! The most common places to wear a pin badge are on clothing, such as jackets, beanie hats, or backpacks. You can also attach a pin badge to a laptop bag, camping blanket or even on your notice boards as part of a large collection. Some people wear pin badges on their lapel or collar as a subtle statement 🧷💜
Our collection of pin badges are the perfect way to add some personality to your look and allow you to break free from the monotony and express yourself in a way that feels authentic and true to you.
Wearing one of our pin badges is also a conversation starter. When you wear a pin badge, you're showing the world a little piece of who you are and what you care about. Whether it's a pin badge featuring your favourite band, TV show, or cause, it's a great way to connect with like-minded people and make new friends 📺🎸
𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗽𝗶𝗰𝗸 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗶𝗻 𝗯𝗮𝗱𝗴𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝗱𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻:
🌍 Pin badges are a great way to express your personality and interests. Whether it's a pin badge featuring your favourite band, TV show, or social cause, wearing a pin badge is a way to show the world a little piece of who you are and what you care about.
👕 They can add a touch of personality and flair to any outfit as they can be used to dress up a plain shirt or jacket, or to add a pop of colour or design to a bag or backpack.
💬 One of the best parts of wearing a pin badge is that they are a great conversation starter. If someone sees a pin badge that they recognise or relate to, they might strike up a conversation with you, leading to new friendships or connections.
🏳🌈 Lastly pin badges can be used to show support for a cause, organisation, or event. For example, a pin badge featuring a breast cancer ribbon can show support for breast cancer awareness, or a pin badge featuring a rainbow can show support for the LGBTQIA+ community.
Our enamel pin badges are available while stocks last, and new designs will be released soon.
𝗦𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝟱* 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗹𝘂𝗱𝗲𝘀:
We're proud to have received so many positive reviews for our products and it really makes us smile when we see one of our regulars repurchasing their favourites for choosing something new.
⭐ "𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙘𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙡𝙚 𝙄 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙝𝙖𝙙!!" - James in Rochester
⭐ "𝙎𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝙄'𝙫𝙚 𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙘𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙡𝙚- 𝙞𝙩 𝙞𝙨 𝙖𝙢𝙖𝙯𝙞𝙣𝙜! 𝙁𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙖 𝙙𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙘𝙞𝙤𝙪𝙨 𝙨𝙘𝙚𝙣𝙩! 𝘼𝙢𝙖𝙯𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙦𝙪𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙮 𝙘𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙡𝙚𝙨, 𝙜𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩 𝙘𝙪𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙧 𝙨𝙚𝙧𝙫𝙞𝙘𝙚, 𝙥𝙖𝙘𝙠𝙖𝙜𝙚𝙙 𝙗𝙧𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙡𝙮!" - Megan in Stoke on Trent
⭐ "𝙎𝙢𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙨 𝙖𝙢𝙖𝙯𝙞𝙣𝙜, 𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙄'𝙙 𝙞𝙢𝙖𝙜𝙞𝙣𝙚 𝙍𝙤𝙣 𝙎𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙨𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙢𝙚𝙡𝙡. 𝘾𝙖𝙣'𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙞𝙩 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙞𝙥𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙤𝙥𝙚𝙣 𝙞𝙩. 𝘾𝙖𝙢𝙚 𝙬𝙚𝙡𝙡 𝙥𝙖𝙘𝙠𝙖𝙜𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙖 𝙣𝙞𝙘𝙚 𝙎𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙨𝙤𝙣 𝙦𝙪𝙤𝙩𝙚 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙙𝙞𝙨𝙥𝙖𝙩𝙘𝙝 𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙚, 𝙧𝙚𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙢𝙚 𝙬𝙝𝙮 𝙄 𝙨𝙝𝙤𝙥 𝙨𝙢𝙖𝙡𝙡!" - Sam in Liverpool
𝗦𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗽𝗶𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻…
We're big fans of shows like Buffy The Vampire Slayer, Parks and Recreation, Glee, Schitt's Creek, Friends, Stranger Things and The Good Place. Many of our items are related to your favourite comfort shows including our pin badges. Here are some of our favourites:
🌳 𝗣𝗮𝘄𝗻𝗲𝗲 𝗚𝗼𝗱𝗱𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘀 𝗠𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝗕𝗮𝗱𝗴𝗲: Hear my womanly roar. Yeah! If you love the great outdoors and voting for who has the Second Flyest Hairstyle, you'll want to become a part of the Pawnee Goddesses! Led by Leslie Knope, the Goddesses are all about inclusivity, female friendships and pushing boundaries together. The Pawnee Goddesses pin badge will be a great addition to your hiking bag or jacket and would be the perfect gift if you and your girl group are heading off on a holiday together.
☕ 𝗛𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗿𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗚𝗶𝗹𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗚𝗶𝗿𝗹 𝗣𝗶𝗻 𝗕𝗮𝗱𝗴𝗲: We're obsessed with this green pin badge perfect for manifesting a Stars Hollow Autumn this year filled with Pippi Longstocking, Santa Burgers and jokes about Nantucket. The middle is brilliantly the top of a Luke's coffee up complete with a few bubbles! This makes a great gift for the Lorelai to your Rory and will be right up your street if your day revolves around coffee and books. We also hope being an Honorary Gilmore Girl makes you closer to getting a date with Jess Mariano.
🌹 𝗗𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗱 𝗥𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗦𝗰𝗵𝗶𝘁𝘁'𝘀 𝗖𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗸 𝗣𝗶𝗻 𝗕𝗮𝗱𝗴𝗲: Ew, David. Channel David Rose's iconic energy with this pin badge. Side effects of wearing may include wanting to wear purely black and white, an entrepreneurial spirit when it comes to skincare and trying really hard not to connect with people right now. If you're prone to an eye-roll or a smirk in conversation then David will be a great addition to your pin collection. A great gift for the David to your Patrick too.
🐧 𝗛𝘂𝗴𝘀𝘆 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗲𝗻𝗴𝘂𝗶𝗻 𝗣𝗶𝗻 𝗕𝗮𝗱𝗴𝗲: The fact that Joey is a 30 year old man and has that much love for Hugsy makes us feel better about being in our twenties and still having Howard the stuffed cat on our desk. We're slightly obsessed with this Hugsy pin badge, it's cute and gives us a cosy Thanksgiving at Monica's vibe. If you also cannot control your obsession with cute things that you see on the internet, consider adding Hugsy to your collection!
📺 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗧𝗲𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗣𝗶𝗻 𝗕𝗮𝗱𝗴𝗲: Chrissie wake up, I don't like this! We've not been able to sit still since the first part of Stranger Things 4 came out. We want to protect Eddie, Steve and Max at all costs.If you're also obsessed with Joyce and Hopper, secretly hope Nancy and Robin become more than friends and can't stop watching Eddie shred his guitar in the Upside Down, then you need this pin badge. Show the world that Netflix is always on repeat on your TV!
𝗧𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗸𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗯𝗿𝗼𝘄𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗲 𝗵𝗼𝗽𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝗲𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗻𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗼𝗿𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀!
Make sure you take the time to browse our full collection to find the pin badge that matches your comfort show or social cause and get ready to stand out from the crowd and wear part of your personality with pride. Let us know which you pick - we always love hearing from our customers and seeing photos of our badges pinned on their jackets or notice boards so don't be afraid to say hello on social media 👋


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Wyndham Hotels Long Beach properties are provided below. Search for cheap and discount Wyndham Hotels hotel rooms in Long Beach, CA for your upcoming meeting or individual travels. We list the best Wyndham Hotels Long Beach hotels + motels so you can review the Long Beach Wyndham Hotels hotel list below to find the perfect place.
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Blanche Lambert Lincoln on Families & ChildrenDemocratic Sr Senator (AR) |
Strengthen America�s Families
While the steady reduction in the number of two-parent families of the last 40 years has slowed, more than one-third of our children still live in one- or no-parent families. There is a high correlation between a childhood spent with inadequate parental support and an adulthood spent in poverty or in prison.
To strengthen families, we must redouble efforts to reduce out-of-wedlock pregnancies, make work pay, eliminate tax policies that inadvertently penalize marriage, and require absent fathers to pay child support while offering them new opportunities to find work. Because every child needs the attention of at least one caring and competent adult, we should create an �extended family� of adult volunteer mentors.
Family breakdown is not the only challenge we face. As two-worker families have become the norm, harried parents have less time to spend on their most important job: raising their children. Moreover, parents and schools often find themselves contending with sex- and violence-saturated messages coming from an all-pervasive mass entertainment media.
We should continue public efforts to give parents tools to balance work and family and shield their children from harmful outside influences. For example, we should encourage employers to adopt family-friendly policies and practices such as parental leave, flex-time, and telecommuting. Public officials should speak out about violence in our culture and should press the entertainment media to adopt self-policing codes aimed at protecting children.
The Christian Coalition was founded in 1989 by Dr. Pat Robertson to give Christians a voice in government. We represent millions of people of faith and enable them to have a strong, unified voice in the conversation we call democracy.


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Russian Hebraist; born at Grodno Nov. 6, 1838; died in Warsaw March 21, 1902. At the age of thirteen he was apprenticed to a watchmaker; three years later he went to Brest-Litovsk, and afterward to southern Russia, spending two years in Kishinef. On returning to Grodno in 1858 he acquired a knowledge of German and Russian, and became a teacher in wealthy families. Later he engaged in business, but was financially ruined in 1881-82. He then devoted himself exclusively to literary work. In 1883 he became associate editor of "Ha-Meliẓ" in St. Petersburg; in 1886 he accepted a similar position on "Ha-Ẓefirah," and settled in Warsaw; in 1888 he became editor of "Ha-Eshkol," a Hebrew encyclopedia, of which only a few instalments appeared. In the same year he became government censor of Hebrew books in Warsaw, which position he retained until 1891.
Friedberg's first Hebrew work was "'Emeḳ ha-Arazim" (Warsaw, 1875; 2d ed., ib. 1893), an adaptation of Grace Aguilar's "Vale of Cedars." His "Rab le-Hoshia'" (Warsaw, 1886), which was first published in "Ha-Ẓefirah," is a translation of Sammter's "Rabbi von Liegnitz." In the year-book "Keneset Yisrael" for 1886 appeared his "'Ir u-Behalot," a translation of L. Lewanda's humorous story "Gnev i Milost Magnata"; and in the "Ha-Asif" of the same year his translations of three short stories by Daudet, Turgenef, and D. Levy respectively. His "Ḳorot ha-Yehudim bi-Sefarad" (Warsaw, 1893) is a history of the Jews in Spain, compiled after Grätz, Kayserling, and other authorities. His "Zikronot le-bet Dawid" (3 vols., ib. 1893-95) is an adaptation of Rekkendorf's "Geheimnisse der Juden." His last work was "Ha-Torah weha-Ḥayyim," a translation of Güdemann's "Geschichte des Erziehungswesen," with notes, additions, and a preface (3 vols., ib. 1896-99). He also wrote a pamphlet of memoirs, and an interesting article onhis experiences with J. L. Gordon and Zederbaum in St. Petersburg, besides numerous articles, feuilletons, and translations.
- Sefer Zikkaron, pp. 94-95, Warsaw, 1890;
- Lippe, Bibliographisches Lexicon, new series, p. 111, Vienna, 1899;
- Sokolov, in Sefer ha-Shanah for 5660 (= 1900), pp. 238-253.


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Kansas City, Missouri (informally abbreviated KC) is the largest city in the US state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses 316 square miles in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties. It is one of two county seats of Jackson County, the other being Independence, which is to the city's east. As of 2010, the population census was 459,787 with a metro area of 2.1 million. Kansas City was founded in 1838 as the "Town of Kansas" at the confluence of the Missouri and Kansas rivers and was incorporated in its present form in 1850. Situated opposite Kansas City, Kansas, the city was the location of several battles during the Civil War, including the Battle of Westport. The city is well known for its contributions to the musical styles of jazz and blues as well as to cuisine, notably Kansas City-style barbecue. In March 2012, Downtown Kansas City was selected as one of America's Best downtowns by Forbes magazine for its rich culture in arts, numerous fountains, upscale shopping and various local cuisine - most notably barbecue.
Like most American cities, Kansas City's mass transit system was originally rail-based. An electric trolley network ran through the city until 1957. The rapid sprawl in the following years led this privately run system to be shut down. The Kansas City Area Transportation Authority (KCATA) was formed with the signing of a Bi-State compact created by the Missouri and Kansas legislatures on December 28, 1965. The compact gives the KCATA responsibility for planning, construction, owning and operating passenger transportation systems and facilities within the seven-county Kansas City metropolitan area. These include the counties of Cass, Clay, Jackson, and Platte in Missouri, and Johnson, Leavenworth, and Wyandotte in Kansas. Kansas City doesn't have a subway or light rail system. Several proposals to build one have been rejected by voters in the past. Voters approved the last light rail proposal but it was struck down by the city council. Kansas City has a long history with streetcars and trolleys. From 1870 to 1957 Kansas City's streetcar system was among the top in the country, with over 300 miles (480 km) of track at its peak. Following the decision to scrap the system, many of its former streetcars have been serving other American cities for a long time. In 2007, ideas and plans arose to add normal trolley lines, as well as possibly fast streetcars to the city's Downtown for the first time in decades.
In July 2005, the Kansas City Area Transportation Authority (KCATA) launched Kansas City's first Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) line called "MAX" (Metro Area Express). MAX links the vibrant River Market, Downtown, Union Station, Crown Center and the Country Club Plaza. This corridor boasts over 150,000 jobs, as well as some of the area's most prestigious real estate and treasured cultural amenities. By design, MAX operates and is marketed more like a rail system than a local bus line. A unique identity was created for MAX, including 13 modern diesel buses and easily identifiable "stations". MAX features state-of-the-art technology to deliver customers a high level of reliability (real-time GPS tracking of buses, available at every station), speed (stoplights automatically change in their favor if buses are behind schedule) and comfort. In 2010 Another MAX line was added on Troost.
-Currently Kansas City Is in the planning phase of a Downtown Streetcar.
"Kansas City, MO is a great city to live in. We moved here from California last year and love it. Price of homes and vehicles is super cheap compared to what we were paying in Los Angeles. After settling in for a few months I decided to buy a 1958 Jaguar Mark VIII. The vehicle was located about 30 minutes outside of Kansas City. With my work schedule and being so busy with after school activities with my kids, I hired Pinnacle Auto Appraisers to inspect and appraise the Jaguar. From setting up the assignment to communicating with the car owner, Pinnacle Auto Appraisers handled everything.
Their thorough pre-purchase inspection covered everything from leaks to rust to test driving the vehicle. Once i received the report, I reviewed everything that have submitted to me. Not only did I receive the basic photos but they took photos of every possible angle on the Jaguar. After hiring Pinnacle Auto Appraisers, I got a call from my bank saying they needed a certified classic car appraisal on this 1958 Jaguar I was purchasing. So I called Pinnacle and they said "No problem, we've already inspected it and have the photos so completed the certified auto appraisal was very simple." After purchasing the vehicle and driving it home, I realized how thorough Pinnacle Auto Appraisers is on their inspection. The car was exactly as described. I want to recommend this company to anyone looking to purchase a vehicle whether it be for a pre-purchase inspection or a certified classic car appraisaal; these guys know their stuff." ~Edward Alvarez Kansas City, MO
We bring our expertise and experience to the table for large corporations as well as the little guy. Whether you are an avid car collector or just someone that loves to drives his car on the weekends: We can help value what you own and make sure your investment is covered.
If you live in Kansas City, Missouri or in the surrounding areas we offer certified auto appraisals on classic cars, fleet vehicles, lease turn-in, total loss, diminished value, stated value, pre-purchase inspections, charitable donations, motorcycles, recreational vehicles and more! Please contact us today for more information.


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Referral Line: 484-628-HELP
Reading Hospital: 484-628-8000
Toll Free: 1-866-988-4377
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FRIDAY, April 3, 2020 (HealthDay News) -- Even after people with mild cases of COVID-19 feel better, new research shows that half still have the virus for up to eight days after symptoms are gone.
That's the conclusion of a small international study of 16 COVID-19 patients in China. The researchers took several throat swabs from all of them.
"The most significant finding from our study is that half of the patients kept shedding the virus even after resolution of their symptoms," said co-lead author Lokesh Sharma, an instructor at Yale School of Medicine in New Haven, Conn. "More severe infections may have even longer shedding times."
It took about five days from the time patients were infected until symptoms appeared, and about eight days before they disappeared. Patients were contagious for one to eight days, the researchers said in a news release from the American Thoracic Society.
Study co-author Dr. Lixin Xie, of Chinese PLA General Hospital in Beijing, advised: "If you had mild respiratory symptoms from COVID-19 and were staying at home so as not to infect people, extend your quarantine for another two weeks after recovery to ensure that you don't infect other people."
Xie and Sharma cautioned doctors that COVID-19 can spread even after symptoms disappear, so patients who have recovered need to be treated as if they're still infected.
Xie said more research is needed to learn whether the virus is capable of transmission in the later stages of COVID-19 infection.
The report was published online March 23 in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.
More information
To learn more about COVID-19, visit the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
SOURCE: American Thoracic Society, news release, March 27, 2020


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INDIANAPOLIS – David West scored 31 points and George Hill added 21, leading the Indiana Pacers past the Chicago Bulls 97-92 in a Central Division showdown Sunday night.
Indiana (38-22) has won seven of its last eight games, going 6-1 since the All-Star break, and holds a four-game lead over second-place Chicago.
The Bulls were led by Marco Belinelli and Jimmy Butler, who each had 20 points for a team that was missing four key players with injuries. Chicago fell behind late in the first quarter and spent most of the rest of the game trying to play catch-up.
The Bulls finally tied the score at 72 on Luol Deng's 8-footer early in the fourth and again at 80 when Butler made two free throws with 7:04 left, but the Pacers converted back-to-back turnovers into four points. Chicago had a chance to tie in the closing seconds but turned the ball over after missing a 3-pointer that would have evened the score at 95.
Indiana has won five of its last seven against the Bulls and three straight in the series for the first time since winning four in a row in 2004.
The Pacers now own the division tiebreaker after going 3-0 against Chicago this season. The final regular-season meeting is March 23 in Chicago.
For the second time in a month, the Bulls showed up at Indiana severely short-handed. Then, as now, they were missing point guard Kirk Hinrich, this time with a right foot injury. Then, as now, they were also missing Derrick Rose, who continues to recover from last season's torn ACL in his left knee. On Sunday, the Bulls were also playing without guard Richard Hamilton, who didn't travel because of a lower back injury, and forward Taj Gibson, who sat out with a left knee injury.
The Pacers played the second half without Danny Granger, who had a sore left knee — the same injury that kept him out of the first 54 games this season. He went 0 for 3 from the field in 8 minutes during the first half.
How much of a difference did it make for Chicago?
After trading baskets early, Indiana clamped down on defense and took control. It ended the first quarter on an 11-4 run to take a 32-21 lead and never let the Bulls get closer than seven points the rest of the half, taking a 47-40 lead to the locker room.
The Bulls rallied in the second half, cutting the deficit to 69-66 when Butler hit a 3-pointer with 31.7 seconds left in the third and tied the score twice early in the fourth.
But after the four-point flurry, the Pacers held off the Bulls' charge and forced an errant 3-pointer and another turnover on Chicago's final possession.
NOTES: Indiana made all four of its 3-pointers in the first quarter. ... The Bulls are 6-21 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse. ... Chicago rookie Marquis Teague scored two points in his second trip to his hometown this season. ... Pacers coach Frank Vogel won his 100th career game. ... Indiana is 8-5 against the Eastern Conference's top teams, including 2-0 against Miami and 2-1 against the Knicks.


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If you're like me, you don't live anywhere near Copenhagen, Denmark where LEGO World is underway from now until February 19. It is there where the official LEGO Minecraft set was unveiled just moments ago. I've been fortunate enough to be sent the official pictures from the press release to share with you. It appears to be built in micro scale given that the mobs are about the same height as a microfig. I'm sure more pics will be up and available from attendees from the event soon. I'd keep my eye on flickr for pics.
The Minecraft set was the first set from the crowd-sourcing effort LEGO CUUSOO to reach the 10,000 vote threshold once the program went live world wide. The set consists of 480 pieces and will cost you $34.99 USD or €34.99 EURO. It's available for pre-order starting TODAY from Mojang's retail partner, Jinx. It will also be available through LEGO Shop@Home and select LEGO Brand Retail stores starting in the summer.
More official pictures below, official press release below that.
And yes, the micromobs are printed, not stickered.
LEGO® Minecraft™ Micro World details unveiled, available for pre-order
BILLUND, Denmark –The LEGO Group and Mojang have released purchase details and pictures of the LEGO® Minecraft™ Micro World today.
The new set, which was the first to receive 10,000 votes of support from users on the global LEGO CUUSOO idea collection platform, will be available for purchase in summer 2012, but can be pre-ordered from today, exclusively through Mojang retail partner Jinx.com for $34.99 €34.99 at https://www.jinx.com/LEGOMinecraft. The sets will also be sold in select LEGO brand retail stores and the LEGO online shop from summer 2012.
"LEGO Minecraft Micro World is designed to celebrate the essence of the LEGO concept and the Minecraft gaming experience,†said Paal Smith-Meyer, Head of the LEGO New Business Group. Each set features four cubic modular vignettes that can be connected to recreate the Minecraft experience in LEGO bricks. One Minecraft block is represented as one 1×1 LEGO plate with a tile on top – not a perfect cube, but the best approximation at the chosen scale.
LEGO Minecraft Micro World includes two of Minecraft's most iconic characters, Steve and a Creeper, represented as "Micro Mobs." The model presents a standard for building a Minecraft world that can be configured any way the builder likes.
The surface of the modules comes off to reveal mines and hidden resources beneath. Fans can build their own landscapes, stack cubes on top of each other, to build the world of Minecraft as they wish.
The product was developed in collaboration with four LEGO fans: Chris Malloy, Michael Thomas, Kyle Tingey, and Bjarne Panduro Tveskov. These fans developed concepts alongside LEGO designers and helped shape the product into its final version.
Upon seeing the physical model the first time, Mojang founder Markus "Notch†Persson exclaimed: "Woohoo!â€
LEGO CUUSOO is a website where LEGO fans can submit their ideas for new LEGO products and collect votes to make their ideas become a reality. They can also vote for other users' ideas. It can be found at https://lego.cuusoo.com.
Ideas that are supported by 10,000 votes have a chance of being selected to become part of the LEGO Group's product portfolio. Consumers who have their ideas chosen will earn 1% of the total net sales of the product.
Mojang will donate the 1% proceeds from LEGO CUUSOO to charity.
For more on the co-creation process for LEGO Minecraft Micro World, see the LEGO CUUSOO blog at https://legocuusoo.posterous.com.
About The LEGO Group
The LEGO Group is a privately held, family-owned company, based in Billund, Denmark. It was founded in 1932 and today the group is one of the world's leading manufacturers of play materials for children, employing approximately 10,500 people globally. The LEGO Group is committed to the development of children's creative and imaginative abilities. LEGO products can be purchased in more than 130 countries. www.LEGO.comLEGO and the LEGO logo are trademarks of The LEGO Group. © 2012 The LEGO Group.
About Mojang
Mojang is an indie game development studio based in Stockholm, Sweden. Founded by Markus "Notch†Persson, Jakob Porser and Carl Manneh in October of 2010, Mojang has reached a user base of over 20 million registered users with its first game, Minecraft. Mojang is currently developing its second game Scrolls and published its first 3rd party game Cobalt in December. For more information, visit https://mojang.com/.


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You are about to add a special order item to your cart. These items may take between 2 and 5 weeks to arrive, depending on the manufacturer. These items are non-returnable. You may still remove the item before you check out.
This product is available for purchase online and in these select store locations: *Please note that our inventory may fluxuate with purchases and that you may wish to call ahead to your local store to check on item availability.


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Koh Samui Travel Guide
A sun lover's holiday paradise, Koh Samui ('the coconut island') is Thailand's third largest island resort and no longer the footloose and fancy-free backpacker's secret hideaway it once was. Koh Samui now rivals Phuket as one of Thailand's most popular holiday destinations, with regular flights arriving at its own airport and disgorging keen holidaymakers. There are a range of accommodation options, from modest beach bungalows to luxury holiday resort hotels. The island still retains its laid-back atmosphere, though, with friendly locals, good food and some not-too-commercial local attractions, such as a crocodile farm and butterfly garden, to keep visitors entertained. Night time is party time, with open-air discos and music bars throbbing in the darkness.
There are three main areas for shopping on Koh Samui: Nathon, Chaweng and Lamai, but all towns on the island offer shopping. Nathon is the main shopping centre, and the town where the ferries arrive. Goods from all over Thailand are available, as well as traditional souvenirs such as silk scarves. Chaweng and Nathon are excellent places to have clothes made by local tailors, while Chaweng and Lamai are the towns to find good quality western-style shops. Most towns have night and day markets, always intriguing regardless of whether one buys anything or not.
Koh Samui is highly regarded for its superb and abundant dining options, from excellent Thai cuisine to seafood, and a growing number of restaurants around the island offer a wide variety of international food and other specialities. Many restaurants have begun serving customers right on the beach for a truly scenic and tropical experience. Chaweng Beach has a large concentration of good international restaurants, while many of the best Thai restaurants are found in Lamai.
The nightlife on Koh Samui is rated among some of the best in Thailand and has discos, cabaret shows, clubs and pubs, many of which are open till sunrise, and are located mainly in Chaweng and Lamai. Chaweng is the most popular area for nightlife, featuring everything from outdoor music bands to stylish nightclubs. Lamai caters for a slightly older crowd, but also has numerous music venues and bars. The top discos on the island are the Green Mango and Reggae Pub (Chaweng), and the Swing Bar (Lamai). There are also opportunities to watch classical Thai dancing, mud wrestling and Thai boxing. Beach parties with fireworks displays also occur regularly.
Holiday activities
As an internationally renowned diving spot, Koh Samui offers a wide range of diving and snorkelling facilities and tours to enjoy on holiday. The largest concentration of dive schools in Koh Samui is in Sairee Beach (Koh Tao), Bophut Beach and Chaweng Beach (Koh Samui). The most popular dive sites are Chumphon Pinnacle and Sail Rock, though most are within range of a full-day excursion from Samui. Diving is year-round in Koh Samui, but windy conditions between October and December can decrease visibility.
If the beaches, watersports and underwater marine life are not enough, the island offers a variety of other activities and attractions, from elephant trekking to Thai cooking classes. For the less active, Samui also has wellness centres, places to learn yoga, alternative therapy centres and wonderful spas that exist for pure indulgence.
Any negatives?
Koh Samui's popularity as a holiday destination has resulted in overcrowding, and some might say an over-abundance of bars and street sellers.


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This Raspberry Custard Tart is a simple tart that showcases fresh raspberries in an easy to make, yet elegant, dessert. The tart is filled with a vanilla custard that is cooked on the stovetop and lightened with a little bit of whipped cream. The custard is studded with fresh, juicy raspberries which go well with the creamy custard and visually "pop" against it for a beautful presentation. I used my All Purpose Tart Dough as the base of the tart, which has a light, crispy texture and a buttery flavor that is a nice backdrop for the vanilla and berries.
Since the tart is topped with fresh fruit and is filled with a chilled vanilla custard, this tart seems perfect for summer entertaining. I used raspberries to finish mine off, but you can use other berries or combine a variety of fruits to suit both your tastes and what is in season. Whatever fruit you choose, the tart is best assembled and served on the day it is made, when the custard and tart shell are at their peak. This isn't to say that the leftovers won't still be tasty – they will be – but the tart shell may begin to soften slightly after sitting with the custard filling for more than a day. Both the tart shell and the custard can be prepared a day or so in advance, so you will only need to assemble the tart the day you intend to serve it.
Lots of people prefer to glaze their fruit when serving uncooked fruit in a tart. You can glaze your berries by heating up some apricot or seedless raspberry jam and brushing it onto the fruit with a pastry brush. This gives the fruit a very shiny finish and is commonly used at most bakeries to make the tarts look pretty. I don't personally care for glazing fruit unnecessarily, and my raspberries were so incredibly fresh and sweet that I didn't want to cover them up with jam unnecessarily. If you want a glossy, "finished" look, you can definitely glaze your berries, but otherwise feel free to leave them plain and enjoy them as they are – just as I did.
Raspberry Custard Tart
1 10 or 11-inch tart shell, prebaked and cooled
1 1/4 cups milk
1 large egg, room temperature
1 egg yolk, room temperature
1/3 cup sugar
3 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream, cold
12-16-oz fresh raspberries (approx 3 cups) washed
In a medium saucepan, bring milk to a simmer over medium heat.
While milk is heating, combine egg, egg yolks and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Beat until smooth, then add cornstarch and beat until smooth again.
When the milk has come to a simmer, very slowly drizzle it into the egg mixture while whisking constantly (tempering) until all of the milk has been added. Return the mixture to the sauce pan. Cookover medium heat, stirring constantly with a spatula and scraping the bottom of the pan, until the custard thickens – 3-5 minutes. Stir in vanilla extract.
Strain through a sieve into a medium bowl, cover surface of the pastry cream with plastic wrap and refrigerate until completely chilled.
When custard has cooled and you are ready to fill the tart, whisk the custard vigorously to smooth it out.
In a medium bowl, beat the heavy cream to stiff peaks. Fold custard mixture into the whipped cream, working in one or two batches.
Fill the prepared tart shell with the cream and evenly distribute raspberries over the custard. Chill for 1 hour before serving to set the filling slightly.
Serves 10.


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Math::NumSeq -- number sequences
# only a base class, use one of the actual classes, such as use Math::NumSeq::Squares; my $seq = Math::NumSeq::Squares->new; my ($i, $value) = $seq->next;
This is a base class for some number sequences. Sequence objects can iterate through values and some sequences have random access and/or a predicate test.
The idea is to generate things like squares or primes in a generic way. Some sequences, like squares, are so easy there's no need for a class except for the genericness. Other sequences are trickier and an iterator is a good way to go through values. The iterators generally try to be progressive, so not calculating too far ahead, yet doing reasonable chunks for efficiency.
Sequence values have an integer index "i" starting either from i=0 or i=1 or whatever best suits the sequence. The values can be anything, positive, negative, fractional, etc.
The intention is that all modules Math::NumSeq::Foo are sequence classes, and that supporting things are deeper, such as under Math::NumSeq::Something::Helper or Math::NumSeq::Base::SharedStuff.
The various methods try to support Math::BigInt and similar overloaded number types. So for instance pred() might be applied to test a big value, or ith() on a bigint to preserve precision from some rapidly growing sequence. Infinities and NaNs give some kind of NaN or infinite return (some unspecified kind as yet).
Some sequences automatically promote to Math::BigInt, usually when values grows so fast that precision would soon be lost. An application can pre-load Math::BigInt to select a back-end or other global options.
In the following "Foo" is one of the subclass names.
$seq = Math::NumSeq::Foo->new (key=>value,...)
Create and return a new sequence object.
($i, $value) = $seq->next()
Return the next index and value in the sequence.
Most sequences are infinite and for them there's always a next value. But if $seq is finite then at the end the return is no values. So for example
while (my ($i, $value) = $seq->next) { print "$i $value\n"; }
Rewind the sequence to its starting point. The next call to next() will be the initial $i,$value again.
See "Optional Methods" below for possible arbitrary "seeks".
$i = $seq->tell_i()
Return the current i position. This is the i which the next call to next() will return.
$i = $seq->i_start()
Return the first index $i in the sequence. This is the position rewind() returns to.
$str = $seq->description()
Return a human-readable description of the sequence. This might be translated into the locale language, though there's no message translations yet.
$value = $seq->values_min()
$value = $seq->values_max()
Return the minimum or maximum value taken by values in the sequence, or undef if unknown or infinity.
$ret = $seq->characteristic($key)
Return something if the sequence has $key (a string) characteristic, or undef if not. This is intended as a loose set of features or properties a sequence can have to describe itself.
digits integer or undef, the radix if seq is digits count boolean, true if values are counts of something smaller boolean, true if value[i] < i generally integer boolean, true if all values are integers increasing boolean, true if value[i+1] > value[i] always non_decreasing boolean, true if value[i+1] >= value[i] always increasing_from_i integer, i for which value[i+1] > value[i] non_decreasing_from_i integer, i for which value[i+1] >= value[i] value_is_radix boolean, value is radix for i
value_is_radix means each value is a radix applying to the i index. For example RepdigitRadix value is a radix for which i is a repdigit. These values might also be 0 or 1 or -1 or some such non-radix to indicate no radix.
$str = $seq->oeis_anum()
Return the A-number (a string) for $seq in Sloane's Online Encyclopedia of Integer Sequences, or return undef if not in the OEIS or not known. For example
my $seq = Math::NumSeq::Squares->new; my $anum = $seq->oeis_anum; # gives $anum = "A000290"
The web page for that is then
Sometimes the OEIS has duplicates, ie. two A-numbers which are the same sequence. When that's accidental or historical $seq->oeis_anum() is whichever is reckoned the primary one.
$aref = Math::NumSeq::Foo->parameter_info_array()
@list = Math::NumSeq::Foo->parameter_info_list()
Return an arrayref or list describing the parameters taken by a given class. This meant to help making widgets etc for user interaction in a GUI. Each element is a hashref
{ name => parameter key arg for new() share_key => string, or undef description => human readable string type => string "integer","boolean","enum" etc default => value minimum => number, or undef maximum => number, or undef width => integer, suggested display size choices => for enum, an arrayref choices_display => for enum, an arrayref }
type is a string, one of
"integer" "enum" "boolean" "string" "filename"
"filename" is separate from "string" since it might require subtly different handling to ensure it reaches Perl as a byte string, whereas a "string" type might in principle take Perl wide chars.
For "enum" the choices field is an arrayref of possible values, such as
{ name => "flavour", type => "enum", choices => ["strawberry","chocolate"], }
choices_display, if provided, is human-readable strings for those choices, possibly translated into another language (though there's no translations yet).
minimum and maximum are omitted (or undef) if there's no hard limit on the parameter.
share_key is designed to indicate when parameters from different NumSeq classes can be a single control widget in a GUI etc. Normally the name is enough, but when the same name has slightly different meanings in different classes a share_key keeps different meanings separate.
The following methods are only implemented for some sequences since it's sometimes difficult to generate an arbitrary numbered element etc. Check $seq->can('ith') etc before using.
Move the current i so next() will return $i or $value on the next call. If $value is not in the sequence then move so as to return the next higher value which is.
Usually seek_to_value() only makes sense for sequences where all values are distinct, so that a value is an unambiguous location.
$value = $seq->ith($i)
Return the $i'th value in the sequence. Only some sequence classes implement this method.
($v0, $v1) = $seq->ith_pair($i)
Return two values ith($i) and ith($i+1) from the sequence. This method can be used whenever ith() exists. $seq->can('ith_pair') says whether ith_pair() can be used (and gives a coderef).
For some sequences a pair of values can be calculated with less work than two separate ith() calls.
$bool = $seq->pred($value)
Return true if $value occurs in the sequence. For example, for the squares this returns true if $value is a square or false if not.
$i = $seq->value_to_i($value)
$i = $seq->value_to_i_ceil($value)
$i = $seq->value_to_i_floor($value)
Return the index i of $value. If $value is not in the sequence then value_to_i() returns undef, or value_to_i_ceil() returns the i of the next higher value which is, value_to_i_floor() the i of the next lower value.
These methods usually only make sense for monotonic increasing sequences, or perhaps non-decreasing so with some repeating values.
$i = $seq->value_to_i_estimate($value)
Return an estimate of the i corresponding to $value.
The accuracy of this estimate is unspecified, but can at least hint at the growth rate of the sequence. For example if making an "intersection" checking for given values in the sequence then if the estimated i is small it may be fastest to go through the sequence by next() and compare, rather than apply pred() to each target.
Math::NumSeq::Squares, Math::NumSeq::Cubes, Math::NumSeq::Pronic, Math::NumSeq::Triangular, Math::NumSeq::Polygonal, Math::NumSeq::Tetrahedral, Math::NumSeq::StarNumbers, Math::NumSeq::Powerful, Math::NumSeq::PowerPart, Math::NumSeq::PowerFlip
Math::NumSeq::Even, Math::NumSeq::Odd, Math::NumSeq::All, Math::NumSeq::AllDigits, Math::NumSeq::ConcatNumbers, Math::NumSeq::Runs
Math::NumSeq::Primes, Math::NumSeq::TwinPrimes, Math::NumSeq::SophieGermainPrimes, Math::NumSeq::AlmostPrimes, Math::NumSeq::DeletablePrimes, Math::NumSeq::Emirps, Math::NumSeq::MobiusFunction, Math::NumSeq::LiouvilleFunction, Math::NumSeq::DivisorCount, Math::NumSeq::GoldbachCount, Math::NumSeq::LemoineCount, Math::NumSeq::PythagoreanHypots
Math::NumSeq::PrimeFactorCount, Math::NumSeq::AllPrimeFactors
Math::NumSeq::ErdosSelfridgeClass, Math::NumSeq::PrimeIndexOrder, Math::NumSeq::PrimeIndexPrimes
Math::NumSeq::Totient, Math::NumSeq::TotientCumulative, Math::NumSeq::TotientSteps, Math::NumSeq::TotientStepsSum, Math::NumSeq::TotientPerfect, Math::NumSeq::DedekindPsiCumulative, Math::NumSeq::DedekindPsiSteps, Math::NumSeq::Abundant, Math::NumSeq::PolignacObstinate
Math::NumSeq::Factorials, Math::NumSeq::Primorials, Math::NumSeq::Fibonacci, Math::NumSeq::LucasNumbers, Math::NumSeq::FibonacciWord, Math::NumSeq::FibonacciRepresentations, Math::NumSeq::PisanoPeriod, Math::NumSeq::PisanoPeriodSteps, Math::NumSeq::Fibbinary, Math::NumSeq::FibbinaryBitCount
Math::NumSeq::Catalan, Math::NumSeq::BalancedBinary, Math::NumSeq::Pell, Math::NumSeq::Tribonacci, Math::NumSeq::Perrin, Math::NumSeq::SpiroFibonacci
Math::NumSeq::FractionDigits, Math::NumSeq::SqrtDigits, Math::NumSeq::SqrtEngel, Math::NumSeq::SqrtContinued, Math::NumSeq::SqrtContinuedPeriod, Math::NumSeq::AlgebraicContinued
Math::NumSeq::DigitCount, Math::NumSeq::DigitCountLow, Math::NumSeq::DigitCountHigh
Math::NumSeq::DigitLength, Math::NumSeq::DigitLengthCumulative, Math::NumSeq::SelfLengthCumulative, Math::NumSeq::DigitProduct, Math::NumSeq::DigitProductSteps, Math::NumSeq::DigitSum, Math::NumSeq::DigitSumModulo, Math::NumSeq::RadixWithoutDigit, Math::NumSeq::RadixConversion, Math::NumSeq::MaxDigitCount
Math::NumSeq::Palindromes, Math::NumSeq::Xenodromes, Math::NumSeq::Beastly, Math::NumSeq::Repdigits, Math::NumSeq::RepdigitAny, Math::NumSeq::RepdigitRadix, Math::NumSeq::UndulatingNumbers, Math::NumSeq::HarshadNumbers, Math::NumSeq::MoranNumbers, Math::NumSeq::HappyNumbers, Math::NumSeq::HappySteps
Math::NumSeq::CullenNumbers, Math::NumSeq::ProthNumbers, Math::NumSeq::WoodallNumbers, Math::NumSeq::BaumSweet, Math::NumSeq::GolayRudinShapiro, Math::NumSeq::GolayRudinShapiroCumulative, Math::NumSeq::MephistoWaltz, Math::NumSeq::HafermanCarpet, Math::NumSeq::KlarnerRado, Math::NumSeq::UlamSequence, Math::NumSeq::ReRound, Math::NumSeq::ReReplace, Math::NumSeq::LuckyNumbers
Math::NumSeq::CollatzSteps, Math::NumSeq::ReverseAdd, Math::NumSeq::ReverseAddSteps, Math::NumSeq::JugglerSteps, Math::NumSeq::SternDiatomic, Math::NumSeq::NumAronson, Math::NumSeq::HofstadterFigure, Math::NumSeq::DuffinianNumbers
Math::NumSeq::Kolakoski, Math::NumSeq::GolombSequence, Math::NumSeq::AsciiSelf, Math::NumSeq::Multiples, Math::NumSeq::Modulo
Math::NumSeq::Expression, Math::NumSeq::File, Math::NumSeq::OEIS
Math::NumSeq::AlphabeticalLength, Math::NumSeq::AlphabeticalLengthSteps, Math::NumSeq::SevenSegments (in the Math-NumSeq-Alpha dist)
Math::NumSeq::Aronson (in the Math-Aronson dist)
Math::NumSeq::PlanePathCoord, Math::NumSeq::PlanePathDelta, Math::NumSeq::PlanePathTurn, Math::NumSeq::PlanePathN (in the Math-PlanePath dist)
Math::Sequence and Math::Series, for symbolic recursive sequence definitions
math-image, for displaying images with the NumSeq sequences
Copyright 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2019, 2020 Kevin Ryde
Math-NumSeq is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 3, or (at your option) any later version.
Math-NumSeq is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU General Public License for more details.
You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along with Math-NumSeq. If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
To install Math::NumSeq, copy and paste the appropriate command in to your terminal.
cpanm Math::NumSeq
CPAN shell
perl -MCPAN -e shell install Math::NumSeq
For more information on module installation, please visit the detailed CPAN module installation guide.


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We're also getting Courtney ready for her school trip to Japan. She leaves on January 1st for 17 days. She is so excited. She is a graphic design major and 15 students and 2 professors are making the trip. If anyone has been to Tokyo or Kyoto, any tips will be helpful!!
We had a big snow storm here in Rhode Island and the northeast last night into today, so we're shoveling out this morning...well, not me. I'm in here typing while hubby is using the snow blower. He loves it. Must be a guy thing!!
It's a pretty one though. The kind that sticks to everything.
Enough about me and the snow...let's see how your week was. Let's start the linking party. You know the rules...
Anything Goes!!
If this is your first time here and want to join in, read below for the "How TO's"
- you can be greatly inspired by wonderful projects, ideas or vacation pictures (looking) and/or
- you can share what you've been up to (linking)
- link up to the specific project post, not your whole blog. Makes it easier to link right to that post and not search through all your entire blog. To find the http address to a specific post, just click on the Title of your post. Copy and paste the address that's at the top of your computer into the linky steps.
- link as many projects as you'd like...old or new
- anything goes...cooking, sewing, knitting, crafts, organizing, remodeling projects, vacations, parties etc...
- visit other links to share some blogging love! You know we all love comments!
- linking is open til Saturday night, so plenty of time to join in
- just click the blue "click here to enter" button which is at the very END...below all the other picture links that everyone has shared. Click and follow the easy steps
Have fun linking up! Don't forget to come back and take a look at all the great projects during the week


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Amateur astronomers spot humongous explosion on Jupiter
An apparent impact on Jupiter early Monday created a fireball on the planet so large and bright that amateur astronomers on Earth spotted the flash.
The surprising impact on Jupiter was first reported by amateur astronomer Dan Peterson of Racine, Wisc., who was observing the largest planet in our solar system when the event occurred, according to the website Spaceweather.com, which tracks space weather and night sky events.
"It was a bright flash that lasted only 1.5 – 2 seconds," Peterson told Spaceweather.com. Peterson used a Meade 12-inch LX200GPS telescope to observe the event, which occurred near the southern edge of Jupiter's northern equatorial belt of clouds.
In a report posted on the Cloudy Nights forum, Peterson said it wasn't clear if the impact would leave a scar on Jupiter much like those seen in 1994, when the comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 broke into pieces and peppered the planet with debris, creating visible impact marks in Jovian cloud tops. It is also not yet known if the object to strike Jupiter was a small asteroid or comet.
"My best guess is that it was a small undetected comet that is now history, hopefully it will sign its name on Jupiter's cloud tops," Peterson wrote.
In Dallas, Texas, amateur astronomer George Hall read Peterson's initial report on an online Jupiter-observing forum.
"When I saw the post, I went back and examined the videos that I had collected this morning," Hall wrote on his night sky photography website on Monday.
Sure enough, Hall had captured a video of the Jupiter impact and reported that it occurred at 6:35 a.m. CDT (1335 GMT) on Sept. 10. He used a 12-inch LX200GPS telescope equipped with a 3x Televue Barlow and Point Grey Flea 3 camera.
"The popularity of modern digital imaging combined with the tenacity and hard work of dedicated planetary observers has paid off yet again with a visual report of a fireball event in Jupiter's atmosphere being reported visually and then being confirmed by stills from a movie sequence," astronomer and astrophotographer Pete Lawrence, a BBC night sky presented who runs the DigitalSky website, told SPACE.com in an email. "The fact that such events have now been reported before may be a catalyst for visual observers to keep watch for them."
Monday's Jupiter impact was the fourth report of objects striking Jupiter since July 2009, when amateur astronomers spotted a bruise the size of the Pacific Ocean in the planet's cloud tops after an apparent asteroid strike on the planet.
Two more Jupiter impact events were reported in 2010 by night sky observers, first in June and then again in August.
One of the most dazzling Jupiter impacts was the Shoemaker-Levy 9 comet crash in 1994. The comet broke into more than 20 pieces as it approached Jupiter, with each piece crashing into the giant planet. Astronomers used telescopes on the ground and in space to watch that event as it unfolded.
"The speed of modern communications also helps, and word of the impact spread around the internet with great rapidity," Lawrence said. "For those with a camera, the lure of imaging Jupiter just became that little bit more exciting!"
Editor's note: If you have a photo of Monday's impact on Jupiter, or any other amazing night sky photo that you'd like to share for a possible story or image gallery, please contact managing editor Tariq Malik at email@example.com.
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WASHINGTON — Cold weather across much of the nation contributed to a drop in retail sales in January. Americans spent less on autos and clothes and at restaurants — a decline that suggests that momentum from consumer spending at the end of 2013 has trailed off.
The Commerce Department said Thursday that retail sales fell a seasonally adjusted 0.4 percent last month. That marked the second straight decline after a 0.1 percent drop in December.
Freezing cold and heavy snowfall raked much of the United States, cutting into store traffic and weighing on post-holiday sales. Major store chains have reduced their profit outlooks, including Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the largest retailer.
"Horrible all round," said Ian Shepherdson, chief economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics.
The tepid showing contributed to a lower opening on Wall Street. The Dow Jones industrial average shed more than 80 points in early trading before paring its losses.
Prospects for economic growth could remain lackluster for February, too, after snowstorms blanketed almost a third of the nation Thursday. The storm overlaps this week with a government survey that's being used to calculate the February jobs report.
"It's quite possible that we have to brace ourselves for another soft jobs report," said Jennifer Lee, senior economist at BMO Capital Markets. "That's due to the snow."
Economic slowdowns caused by winter weather usually lead to stronger growth once temperatures rise again. But the repeated battering of snowstorms this winter means that waiters, limousine drivers and other hourly workers might never recoup their lost wages later this year, said Diane Swonk, chief economist at Mesirow Financial.
"You disrupted incomes for some people permanently," Swonk said.
She estimates that economic growth during the first three months of this year will be "well below" a 2 percent annual rate — a steep drop-off from the 3.2 percent rate in the final quarter of 2013.
The retail sales report is the first look at last month's consumer spending, which accounts for about 70 percent of all economic activity. Many economists had predicted that stronger consumer spending this year would cause growth to accelerate.
But along with falling retail sales, several economic reports indicate that growth may have slowed.
Factories received fewer orders last month. The number of Americans who have signed contracts to buy homes has plummeted to its lowest level in more than two years.
And the past two monthly job reports were sluggish. Only 113,000 workers were added in January. That's slightly better than the 75,000 jobs for December. But combined, it's about half the pace of average monthly job gains over the past two years.
There are also signs that the momentum at the end of last year was weaker than initially thought. Retail sales for December were revised downward in Thursday's report. What was initially a 0.2 percent gain turned into a 0.1 percent loss.
Auto sales fell 2.1 percent in January. Excluding volatile spending on autos, gas and building supplies, retail sales were flat compared with December. Americans spent more on gas because of rising prices. Purchases of building materials also increased, possibly a sign of preparation for snowstorms.
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